A bit of good news from the Irish salmon scene. These measures may will have a very positive impact on the salmon stocks on this side of the Atlantic. And the effects may be felt further afield than in Ireland - England and France and the rest of europe may well benefit from the increased escapement..

The proposed regulations can be read on-line at the link below. The commercial quota is detailed in the draft (right at the end of the document). The quotas seem like a good start (maybe a little generous?), but the salmon catch for 2001 has still to be released.

http://www.cfb.ie/tags/draft_notice.htm

On a more fishy note I have had a few great days after brown trout on both river and lake. We arrived a little early for the Duckfly on Lough Corrib - but still did well and I had a few fish in the boat (only one kept for the Easter dinner). We stayed three days and had fish each days despite stormy conditions on day one and a flat calm on day 3. On the one good day we all had plenty of good fishing - a new experience for us!. T

ook a trip to a small stream in Wicklow - a river called the Aughrim - and caught about a dozen small wild brownies on hairs ears and dry Greenwells Glories under a brigtht blue sky with the sun keeping us warm - that was a smashing few hours!:hehe:

Mylo

Lefty

04-11-2002, 12:06 PM

Mylo,
Great to hear from you. I was wondering how things were going across the pond. Always wondered about Atlantic salmon in Ireland vs. Newfoundland. Are the stocks connected in any way? With the stocks very low over here does it impact the Iceland area etc.?? Further?

On another note: what rod setup did you use on the wild browns in the small stream in Wicklow? 5 wt.?
How long is the rod?

Take care,

Lefty

Sprocket

04-11-2002, 05:30 PM

good to hear from you Myles, keep the reports coming.

question: can you direct me to a place (book, website, etc.) where I can find the leader recepie you guys use for rigging three flies - I read in a magazine (which I cannot find) that it's a popular method on the bigger loughs.

thanks,
TMS

Mylo

04-12-2002, 04:17 AM

Lefty- the stocks mix off Greenland on the feeding grounds, but they seem to segregate once the urge comes to find home streams. I don't think Us/Canadian stocks ever get too close to the Irish side of the Atlantic (which is probably just as well!). The same is the case for Iceland, I think. In addition they rely on ranched fish to maintain the commercial operations. And it is all done inshore - again as in Ireland.

For the small browns I was using a 7' no 4/5 with a no.4 dt floater. I was fishing two wets firstly and then snipped off the dropper and played with the drys. It was a bit more exciting given the size of the fish - a more entertaining take and strike.

Sprocket - The way to rig three flys for a lake is fairly straight forward. Though tapered leaders were tied before, it seems everyone (including the ghillies!) opt for a level length of 6lbs with the droppers tied on with four turn water knots (turl knot).

Depending on the wariness of the fish the leaders will be anything from 9 to 14 feet with some (exceptional casters) going up to 20 feet! The droppers are best kept short - about 6 inches and can be up to three feet apart but two will do as well.

The flies are generally something slim at the point and middle (standard traditional wets) with something a bit bushier/bigger on the top dropper to wallow in the surfade and cause a disturbance in the wave.

Once hooked the fish is best played to the upwind side of the boat so that the drift won't carry you over the fish and get one of the other flies stuck in the bottom of the boat.

Oh and the rod is generally about 10-11 feet with a no. 7 fished floating.

http://www.fishandfly.co.uk/ffedit0501.html

Gives a good guide -and for those who have not found this site before it is packed with top tips and handy hints for anyone interested in the ff goings on on this side of the water.